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Building a legacy of love at Kansas State University

By Hayli Morrison

Though raised in Seattle, Fred and Janice Hoppe established a longstanding legacy of love for Kansas State University. Now that legacy will live on forever through a gift in their trust to support scholarships for engineering students.

“K-State is like a beloved family member,” said Fred Hoppe, explaining why the couple included the university in their estate plans. “We chose to support this gift in the same way we wish to pass on our assets to our children.”

In 1984, a desire to teach brought the couple to Manhattan from their former home in Overland Park, Kansas, where Fred retired early from his career in vehicle design. Fred embraced teaching in K-State’s College of Engineering while Janice operated a dressmaking business, raised the couple’s six children, and volunteered with community organizations like Manhattan Crisis Center and Memorial Hospital.

The Hoppes were married 51 years before Janice passed away in 2001. Together, they were often seen at countless K-State athletic and social events. They also loved supporting K-State students, whether cooking a celebratory meal for outgoing seniors or helping a design team patent an innovative idea that became a commercially successful product.

“I have always admired the students’ curiosity and ambition,” Hoppe said. “Our hope was that worthy students lacking the resources to finance their study might benefit from this scholarship.”